Courses

Life writing has become one of the most widely read literary genres of the past two decades. Its popularity has correlated with a shift in emphasis in which the more predictable autobiographies of celebrities and influential leaders have been joined by a flood of life writing centered on the body. A genre that was once reserved for the most accomplished and able bodied among us has increasingly addressed the life experiences of authors whose bodies diverge from norms of gender, sexuality, race, age, or health.

Our course will study the rise of what G. Thomas Couser calls “the some body memoir,” asking how it revises traditional autobiography as it attempts to carve out literary space for voices and bodies that have not historically been represented in public.  We will consider how these new memoirs talk back to bodily norms of health, success, and beauty, with particular attention to writings by women, trans or genderqueer people,
people of color, and those who are ill, disabled, or elderly. 

We will begin by establishing a conceptual understanding of memoir, selfhood, and embodiment. From there, each week’s reading will pair a memoir with critical writings and self representations in other media such as sound, drawing, photography, and film. In addition to more traditional academic writing, students will also have opportunities to experiment with their own life writing, culminating in a self-portrait in the medium of
their choice.